The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1887-09-10
LYMAN ABB0gbs CONFESSION OF
FAITH,

ga Confession lof Faith" which he
had previously made in conversation
with some thealcgically conservative
friends" 1t is notla general confession;
but is confined 10 the one point of the
moral destiny ofsman. The position of
the author, who is man of unique
personality, catholic, spiritual, fertile :;
of exceptional cdltnre and rare literary
graces, draws saecial attention to his
deliberate delivegance on a subject just
now so prominently before the Christ
ian public. Thes .Confession" is, more
over, theological phenomenon, re,
markable alike for its afirmations and
| its Silences.
The creed may bSeondensed into these
propositions 4, The world is a lost
world, needing to be saved 1t is the
whole world, the entire human race
that is lost 2. ssGod in Christ is work
ing out the cure OF the race, the reform
of the race" the salvation of the race.
3. This work of saving the race is not
to go on forever. 1t has a time limit;
it will come to an end. And that "end"
is described in the Scriptures as 1.-THE
end of the world" 1t is the day of
judgment. Then all effort to save the
race will be given over; then all proba-
tion will cease. 4. 1t follows consist
emily from this view that death is not
the end of probation. Death has moth
ing whatever to sdo with 'the end"
There is limit,f lit is the judgment.
But death is not the limit. 1t would
be as reasonable and as Scriptural to
fix the limit for every one at the age of
forty years as at death. 5. But it must
not be hastily inferred that the oppor-
tunity of salvation continues for every
one after death. Nay, it must not even
be assumed that probation lasts for
every one until death. The end of op-
portunity may come for a soul long
prior to death. There are men alive as
to their bodies, who yet are dead spirit
ually, and to whom the door is shut"
What DR.. Abbott says on this point
cannot be better presented than in his
own words
II believe, then, that no man has a
right to assume that probation contin-
ues for every man till death. Life is
made up of successive character trials.
Every failure Of the character weakens
it for the succeeding trial, and makes
the hope of fzNl success less; every
success stIengt 81 sEzr ,5h5 character and
makes the hope of final success greater.
A man may SO environ himself in SEN
suality, or c0vetOuSness, or ambition,
or selfshness as to be beyond all hope
of redemption in this life or the next.
A man may, by repeated choosing of
death rather than life, cursing rather
than blessing, evil rather than good, so
! give himself over to reprObate mind
that God gives him over also. When
God loses hope for soul, what is there
left %
Such is Lyman Abbott's Confession
of Faith, - on the supreme question of
the destiny of man. 1t may be said of
it in general, that it resembles the older
confessions, from which it seeks to be
separate and distinct, in the particular,
that like each of them it takes the feat
ures of the gospel and draws them out
of shape. The superiority which it has
to pure Calvinism, or to the Hopkinsian
diversion, or to the governmental the
Ory, or to the New Orthodoxy" which
Andover is suing out a patent on, is
quite counterbalanced by original dis
tortions of its own. 1t has the COM
mon orthodox defect-it is self contra
dictory. The rays of truth are too
straight to shine through the whole
length of any scheme affected with the
orthodox crook. Let us examine this
confession little.
Much depends on the meaning at
tached to the words, "lost" and saved. -
What does DR.. Abbott mean by ''lost
world ?'' If he means that mankind
are not in the way of life, and not able
to find it without Divine help, his
meaning accords with the fact and with
the doctrine Of the New Testament,
If he intends that the world is lapsed,
disOrganized or if he holds with Henry
Drummond, that there is no spiritual
life in the natural man until he is vital
lied by the Divine Spirit, then his
major premise is an error of such di-
mensions as to compel stupendous
departure from truth in the conclusion.
What does DR., Abbott mean
The statement that "God is in Christ
working out the cure, the reform of the
race, requires to be amended only by
inserting, along with cure and reforma
tion, the idea of right moral education.
Where there is disease, cure is demand
ed where there is wickedness, reform
is called for. But before all, and after
all, and through all, direction and nur-
ture are required. DR.. Abbott uses the
figure of a hospital and of reform
school. Both are unfortunate. They
are false to the facts. He who begins
by treating ''the wOrld'' as a mass of
manned and diseased mortality, or
prison full of criminals. will end by be-
- nuu..